It is expensive to build a communications networks for fishing boats on coastal regions. As IP services continuously expand over land mass, it becomes more demanding beyond the land mass coverage. Current communications infrastructures are either not adequate to reach these moving platforms on sea, to support adequate bandwidths, and/or to be too costly to service these communities. Not aiming for a goal of having a link to every users on a fishing boat, we are aiming for wideband IP connectivity to a small moving ocean surface vehicle which will efficiently aggregate and distribute all IP traffic dynamically on the platform to/from gateways on land via satellites or UAVs. There are three required elements on board moving platforms to make a coastal communications system successful; (1) user's communication equipment, (2) aggregating and distributing equipment, and (3) communications equipment connecting the platform to/from IP gateways on lands.
In order to support a coastal satellites communications system, it is desirable to develop antennas with a distributed aperture on fishing boats for satellite communications (Satcom) capability. An objective system that can be used over the existing commercial communications satellites covering coastal regions of Asia, features both C, Ku, and other commercial communications bands, such as those from many commercial satellite operators, including those in Asia operating Chinasat 5, Chinasat 12, and those of ST-2, covering West Pacific, and part of Indian Ocean.
There are many current Satcom terminal development efforts supporting various frequencies. Size, weight, and power (SWaP) are usually design drivers. These efforts are struggling with integration issues for different hosting moving platforms/vehicles. There are other constraints on vehicle antennas besides the key design driver with a low size, weight and power consumptions (SWaP). The desired solutions take into account of vehicle integration issues, featuring (1) flexible and scalable approaches with multiple smaller apertures and (2) minimized physical footprints for easy installation, such as on a short mast, and limited volume for installation.
As to the flexible and scalable approach with multiple smaller apertures, the designs must be configurable to different small vehicles accommodating re-calibrations and testing at final integration. In addition, the designs may consist of different types of subarrays or elements without impacting overall communications performance. These arrays shall be distributed on the topside of an ocean surface vehicle operating coherently, and may not be plannar.
As to the minimized physical footprint for easy installation, the designs shall be low profile apertures to avoid the presence of high physical profile and excessive high wind loading, and shall tolerate “soft” blockage to commercial SATCOM space assets of Geo-synchronous satellites, taking advantage of elements not with hemispherical FOV.